The Palau Legacy Pledge: A Case Study of Advertising, Tourism, and the Protection of the Environment
Ismael López Medel
Abstract
Environmental challenges are affecting every aspect of our lives, especially among the world’s largest industry: tourism. This chapter studies the application of creativity to a tourism campaign for the Republic of Palau, an island nation in the Pacific, in need of promoting tourism and educating visitors while protecting the environment. It is the story of four local activists who convinced their government to think creatively. The result is the Palau Legacy Project, a campaign that included a special pledge that visitors needed to sign to gain access to the island. The campaign was critically acclaimed, winning three Cannes Lions Grand Prix and seven D&AD Festival pencils, gathering over 280,000 pledges, 1.7 billion impressions, and $6.2 million in earned media. Most importantly, it demonstrated how innovation, boldness and creativity make advertising an unstoppable force.